Water trapped in underground geological formations, and water injected into oil and gas reservoirs to achieve optimal hydrocarbon recovery, may be produced and brought to the surface during the hydrocarbon product recovery process. This produced water may have variable physical and chemical properties. For instance, depending on the geographic location of the reservoir and the particular formation, the sodium content of produced water may be extremely high and its discharge to the environment may be harmful to both plant and animal life.
A primary contaminant in produced water is sodium bicarbonate and/or sodium chloride. The high bicarbonate/carbonate content and overall total dissolve solids (TDS) content adversely affects the environment. A number of countries have enacted regulations prohibiting the untreated discharge of produced water. There is an unmet need for processes that expand options for recycling and reusing produced water, and for creating useful products from produced water.